


Reading You Like A Book

by Saringold



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: AU where Ashe has a birthday during war phase, Alternate Universe, Can be read as pre-slash or platonic friendship, Friendship, Gen, Happy Birthday Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert, Nonbinary Linhardt von Hevring, Post-Timeskip | War Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Sorry honey :(, Tea Parties
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:07:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27057697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Saringold/pseuds/Saringold
Summary: Ashe is sent on a mission to discover if Linhardt and Caspar are "just friends." Along the way, he makes some just friends of his own.Written to celebrate Ashe's birthday, 10.17.2020!~
Relationships: Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert & Linhardt von Hevring, Caspar von Bergliez & Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert, Caspar von Bergliez & Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert & Linhardt von Hevring, Caspar von Bergliez & Linhardt von Hevring
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	Reading You Like A Book

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY BIRTHDAY ASHE UBERT!!! I'm sorry we can't normally celebrate your birthday post-timeskip, but on the other hand, that may be for the best. This story is in an AU where his birthday does take place during the war phase, though.

Ashe smiled as an easy breeze blew across the monastery, the wind and the overall beautiful day lightening his heart just a bit and allowing him to relax somewhat, to breathe slightly easier despite the fact that a war was in progress. Puffy white clouds drifted across the eternally blue expanse of the sky, the leaves swayed and sashayed in the breeze, the bright afternoon sunlight drifted down in warm, invigorating rays, and the Great Tree Moon, as always, provided the perfect weather for relaxing somewhere with a cat or a good book… or, perhaps if one was lucky, both. Yet, as much as he would love to idle, find a cozy reading spot, and forget his troubles for an hour or six, he had an appointment to keep today, one that while usually enjoyable anyway, would be made all the better by the nice breeze and calm weather. 

With light, careful steps that wouldn’t alert even a deer to his presence, Ashe bounded across the monastery’s surprisingly well-kept courtyard to the outdoor gardens behind the buzzing dining hall, where he saw Annette and Mercedes sitting and chatting at one of the tables, a tiered assortment of sweet snacks already out and three teacups with matching saucers placed invitingly atop the painted white surface. He approached their table, clearing his throat politely, and the two looked up, startled, before giving him warm, inviting grins. “Ah, there you are Ashe!” Annette exclaimed. “Mercie and I were just talking while we waited for you.” Mercedes smiled warmly and gestured to the open seat. 

“Please, have a seat, Ashe. We just got here ourselves, so the sweets are warm and the tea is fresh.”

Ashe obligingly took the offered chair, thanking the cheerful healer as she poured him some tea, and the alluring aroma of angelica arose from the cup, the smell itself making him smile. He took a sip and sighed contentedly; it was perfect. The tea had steeped well, letting all of the herbal flavor burst forth without the bitterness of wasted potential that came with letting it sit for too long. Now feeling rather mellow, Ashe rested his hands on his knees, and looked toward the two spellcasters expectantly. “So! You said in your invitation that you had something rather important to speak with me about.”

The two women nodded, their bright smiles morphing into more neutral expressions as they fixed him with appraising eyes. Ashe took another sip of tea, the shift in atmosphere unnerving him slightly. He liked Annette and Mercedes very much, and if they were in some kind of trouble, he would be more than happy to assist them, but whatever it was must have been serious for them to react this way. 

Mercedes spoke first, the soft lilt of her voice putting Ashe a little more at ease. “We do. You see, we were hoping that you might have the answer to something that Annie and I have been wondering about for a few moons now.”

Annette nodded as Mercedes turned to look at her, expecting that she would take up the story next. “Right. Ashe, we were wondering…”

Ashe swallowed in anticipation, feeling a bead of sweat gather and roll down the back of his neck as his hands gripped at his knees, putting creases into his tunic. What could they possibly have to ask? His body tensed slightly as he awaited Annette’s next words, fixing her with a piercing but inviting gaze.

“...Are Caspar and Linhardt 'just friends'?”

Of all of the queries that Ashe had been mentally preparing to answer, that one hadn’t even reached his top 20. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped as his brain scrambled to catch up with his ears, and as he parsed the question, he took a deep breath, trying to piece his memories together. The two had always been close, ever since their academy days, and that fact hadn’t seemed to change much. In the six weeks since he had been back among familiar faces and more righteous ranks, he had seen Linhardt reading (and more often sleeping) in the library or war council room, and Caspar had often been the one to heave them over his shoulder and take them back to their room, or even bring them dinner if they’d gotten so wrapped up in research that they’d forgotten to eat. Caspar was perpetually punching the padding out of an assortment of wooden dummies over by the training grounds, playing with cats, or otherwise getting involved in trouble somewhere, and right nearby would inevitably be Linhardt with a healing spell on their lips or a fish in their hands to help feed the felines. 

Still, that didn’t mean that the two were anything more than friends, and Ashe was loath to make assumptions about someone’s personal life with incomplete information. Drawing his eyebrows together and pursing his lips, one of his arms lifted into a half-shrug as he looked toward the two mages. “I’m afraid I don’t know. They seem close, but they’ve always been close, and from what I can tell, they don’t act any less close than they used to.”

The two women sighed, fixing him with mirrored looks of disappointment. “Yes, we figured that might be the case,” Mercedes murmured. “You’ve always seemed to get along with Caspar, so we had hoped you might know, but that’s alright. If that’s how it is…”

“...then we need you to do a favor for us instead!” Annette cut in. “Ashe, we need you to find out the truth! We need you to find out whether Linhardt and Caspar really are just friends!”

Ashe stared askance at Annette and Mercedes, the redhead drumming her fingers on the table as she looked at him expectantly. “Wait, wait, wait… you want me to… what?” the perplexed archer stammered, a deep crimson blush blooming across his face and highlighting his freckles as he swallowed, hoping to ease his sudden nerves. 

Annette sighed, bringing her hands up to her face in a thoughtful expression. “There’s nobody else we could ask! You seem like you would get along with Linhardt, and you and Caspar are already friends again, from the looks of it!” 

Ashe huffed, considering her point. It was true that after the Great Cat Caper that he and Caspar had helped solve two weeks ago, they had become rather close; they often jogged together in the mornings and worked together on training exercises, and Caspar had proven himself to be just as kind and energetic as before, if a bit more considerate and thoughtful as well. Ashe had to admit that he enjoyed spending time with Caspar, and while he didn’t know nearly enough about Linhardt to assume anything, he had seen them around often enough to draw a few conclusions.

“Ashe?” Mercedes questioned, jolting him from his thoughts. “Are you alright?”

“Oh! Uh, sorry, Mercedes. Yeah, I’m fine. I guess I could find out, but why not just ask them yourselves?”

It was Mercedes’ turn to sigh, the motion causing her shoulders to deflate somewhat. “We’ve tried, but they’re both… unintentionally tight-lipped about it, shall we say.”

Ashe’s brow furrowed, and he tilted his head slightly as he looked at her in confusion. It was Annette who elaborated, slamming her hands on the table. “Look, just the other day, I went up to Caspar while we were training and I asked him ‘Hey, Caspar! Are you seeing Linhardt?’ and he gave me a look like _I_ was the crazy one and said ‘Yeah! I see them every day!’ and he went right back to training. Just what am I supposed to make of that?”

Ashe huffed in response, closing his eyes. That really did sound like Caspar, and if his own experiences and their story were to be believed, it really was no surprise subtlety had only gotten so far with the brash bluenette. “Alright, I’ll help. But I’m not going to do anything like sneak into their rooms or intrude on their privacy, ok? There are limits to these kinds of things.” 

Annette grinned, reaching over and patting his arm. “Just knowing you’ll help is enough for us! Thanks, Ashe! Not that you have to start immediately, of course.” 

Mercedes smiled warmly at him. “We really do appreciate it. Just let us know what you find out, whenever you get around to it.” With that, the two spellcasters finished their now-lukewarm tea and stood up, packing up their things before hoisting their packs onto their backs. “Take all the treats you want, Ashe,” Mercedes continued. “Consider them a thank you for hearing us out.” 

Annette waved as they walked away, her bright red hair looking almost fiery in the bright sunlight. “Good luck, Ashe! See you for the council meeting later!”

Ashe let out a deep sigh as they left, finishing his own cup of tea. It was still good, even if it was cooler than he liked, but the sweets were sure to be delicious, and would provide good motivation for this mission. He wrapped them up in a clean napkin left on the table, and got together his own items, breaking into a light jog as he headed for the council meeting. Although Annette and Mercedes hadn’t exactly made this out to be urgent, he didn’t want to run the risk of forgetting either, so best to get it over with while he still had his objective fresh in his mind. He would take tonight to prepare, and then tomorrow, he would begin in earnest. 

The next day saw Ashe approaching his target stealthily, trying to maintain his focus and not lose himself to the siren songs of the stories lining the many shelves of the Garreg Mach Library. If he remembered correctly, thanks to it still being relatively close to lunch hour, the library would be mostly empty. This meant that this was his best chance of encountering Linhardt, who had always preferred to work in quieter spaces, and with any luck, both them and Caspar together. It was time to start his investigation. With how the ceiling-high bookcases were arranged, there weren’t many places to hide, but that held true for his quarry as much as himself, and moments after, he spotted a familiar form standing over by one of the shelves, pouring over the pages of a particularly large book that Ashe was well acquainted with. He padded over, curious eyes locked on the pages, and caught a glimpse of the gorgeous woodblock illustration of the Moon Knight brandishing his sword aloft under the full moon’s pale light before a soft “ahem” drew his gaze up to meet the curious stare of Linhardt von Hevring, sea-blue meeting grass green, and a flash of embarrassment coursed through him. “Ah ha… hello…” Ashe greeted, trying not to let a blush overtake his face. 

“Hello,” Linhardt answered coolly, their face impassively blank. “What is it you need, Ashe?”

Ashe’s eyes snapped down to the still open book in their hands. “N-nothing! I just saw that you were reading this, and… uh… Is Caspar here with you?” His tongue felt like lead as he scrambled for words, begging his brain to put the pieces together, when Linhardt gave a thoughtful hum.

“He is not; I do believe he’s either training or inhaling his food at an unhealthy pace. However, you seemed to take great interest in this book. Why is that?”

Ashe blinked, parsing the words as his brain latched onto the new direction of conversation. “It happens to be a favorite of mine! I’ve read it cover to cover many times. Do you enjoy tales of knights and chivalry, Linhardt?”

The healer nodded, and Ashe could have sworn he saw the other’s expression shift to one of interest, although Linhardt’s expressions tended to be so subtly different that it could very well have been a trick of the light. “Yes, every so often. Annette recommended it to me, and I thought I would give it a try.”

“Oh? And what do you think of it?”

“It’s not bad, but perhaps a little too… idealistic for my taste.”

Ashe had to pause, wording his response carefully so as not to sound too defensive. “Idealistic, you say? I find it very satisfying to read about a righteous hero who travels around to various villages, saving those in trouble for no reward whatsoever; he is someone who we could all learn something from.”

Linhardt glanced at him thoughtfully, digging out a bookmark and placing it between the open pages before closing the book and tucking it under their arm. “You’re not entirely wrong, but this knight was fortunate enough to both not have a family to care for and be completely self-sufficient. Thus, he did not need to accept the rewards. However, for most knights and mercenaries, that simply isn’t an option. It is unrealistic to think that most would turn down a reward, especially if there are other mouths to feed.”

Ashe blinked, mulling the idea over. “Perhaps that’s true, but I would think that the gratitude of the villagers would be its own reward for such a knight, especially if his reputation precedes him.”

The mage brought a hand up to their chin, thinking. “Reputation is a risk. Were I a villager in this scenario, I would be none too trusting of such a knight, thinking it too good to be true; I would assume that now that my village owes him a favor, he may come to collect it one day and we would be unable to turn it down, whatever it may be.”

A scowl etched itself into Ashe’s features as he fixed Linhardt with a stern look. “That’s an awfully pessimistic point of view. There are lots of knights who have no such motives, and just because a book isn’t ‘realistic’ doesn’t make it bad!”

Linhardt shook their head, their long locks swaying with the motion. “I never said that it was bad, simply that one should absorb the lessons it has to teach with some amount of caution.” Ashe simply stared at them, prompting Linhardt’s eyes to widen. “Ah, I apologize. It seems that I’ve said too much.” They turned on their heel, breezing past him and making their way toward the library entrance. Once they reached the threshold, however, they stopped abruptly, looking back at him. Ashe did not turn around. “For what it’s worth, however, I did enjoy our conversation,” Linhardt said softly, then walked away, leaving Ashe to stand in the now-empty library in silence, trying to process the conversation.

Linhardt had made some good points, so why did Ashe feel so _annoyed_ about it? Not to mention that during the course of the conversation, he had completely forgotten to ask Linhardt anything about their and Caspar’s relationship. Well, in that case, it was time to ask the bluenette himself. Maybe he could get some answers, and perhaps blow off some steam in the process.

“AND! That’s! Why! I’m annoyed!” Ashe yelled, punching the stuffing out of a dummy as Caspar watched, wide-eyed.

“Uh, wow, Ashe! I wouldn’t have thought you’d have… uh… so much anger,” Caspar remarked, looking a little taken aback by Ashe’s fighting spirit.

Ashe finally dropped his fighting stance, panting heavily, and wiped his sweaty forehead on his sleeve, walking back over to where Caspar was supervising so that he could get his borrowed training gauntlets off. “I usually don’t, but Linhardt’s bluntness really annoyed me. I told them that it was my favorite book, and when I asked them what they thought, they decided to just criticize it!”

Caspar gave a confused hum. “So… you asked them what they thought, and when they brought up reasons why they didn’t like it all that much, you got mad about it?”

Ashe paused, and felt all of his anger drain out of him as he considered Caspar’s words. “Well, when you put it that way…”

Caspar put a reassuring hand on Ashe’s shoulder. “That’s just the kind of person Linhardt is, Ashe. They’re blunt, sure, and their honesty _can_ be kind of annoying sometimes, but they’ll always tell you the truth as they know it. And if they cared enough about the conversation, cared enough about _you,_ to listen and debate your points, then that means they respect your opinion a lot! They wouldn’t stand around and listen to someone they had no interest in.” 

Ashe blinked, his mind replaying the events of earlier that day, and a wave of shame washed through him as he reconsidered the circumstances. So, Linhardt had been trying to engage him in earnest and be honest about what they thought because he had asked? And he’d gotten angry just because their point of view differed from his? That really wasn’t chivalrous of him at all. His gaze fell to the floor. “I… should apologize.”

Caspar huffed, crossing his arms. “I mean, yeah, you should, but the thing is, if the book means that much to you, you should try to really talk with them about it. I’ve known Lin since we were kids, and sometimes people have a really hard time understanding the both of us and vice versa. If you really want to make things right, then get to know them more so that you can understand them better. I'm sure your feelings will reach them; you're good at talking, and they're good at listening. Once you do that, I promise you won’t find anyone better to talk about… well, _anything_ with!”

Caspar beamed, and Ashe couldn’t help but grin back. With that sort of endorsement, maybe he had gone about this the wrong way. “I guess… I should go find them, then.” 

Caspar hummed, then walked over to the wall, grabbing both of their packs. “That’s the spirit. C’mon! I’ll come with you; I’m done with training for the day anyway.”

The two meandered around the monastery for a short while as they looked for Linhardt, only stopping to pet and admire each cat and dog they found along the way, and as the afternoon just started to turn to evening, the sky changing hue from a bright blue to a blend of oranges and reds, Ashe finally spotted a familiar figure down by the docks of the fishing pond. Luckily, they were once again more or less alone as it was starting to get close to dinnertime, and as the two approached, Caspar called out to the lone fisher, raising a hand in greeting. “Hey, Linhardt!”

The crest scholar’s head jerked up, their sea-eyed gaze fixing on the two of them. “Caspar. And Ashe as well.” They made no move to stand up, but instead seemed perfectly happy to wait for them to state their business. Ashe cleared his throat and locked eyes with the healer.

“Um… I just wanted to apologize for earlier. It was wrong of me to be upset at you for stating your opinion, especially when I asked for it. You’re perfectly allowed to dislike whatever books you want, so I’m sorry that I took it so personally when I really shouldn’t have. A-and! I would love to talk about books with you some more; you made some good points, and it’s interesting to hear from others about what they think, so…” He stopped for breath, letting it out slowly. “I’d like to talk to you more.”

Linhardt blinked, silent, and Ashe started feeling a bead of sweat roll down the back of his neck as they suddenly stood up, placing their fishing pole aside. “I thank you, Ashe, and I apologize as well. I have always had a difficult time knowing quite what to say to other people; I know full well that my manner of speaking and communication can be off putting to some, and yet I struggle with fixing the problem simply because I don’t know how else to do it. All the same, I appreciate that you took the time to say something, and as I said, the Moon Knight’s tale isn’t bad and I can appreciate why it might be a favorite for someone as upstanding and courageous as yourself.” Their normally impassive face shifted into an expression of quiet happiness, lips quirking into a smile, and Ashe looked at them, then, for the first time feeling like he understood Linhardt a little better. He couldn’t help but answer their smile with his own, unable to keep a little thrill from shooting down his spine. 

“See? I knew it’d be fine!” Caspar piped up, and Ashe jumped a little, so caught up in the moment that he’d completely tuned out the bluenette behind him. “Anyway, Lin, what’s in the box? I’ve been trying to figure it out, since it’s wrapped way more nicely than you’d usually do it, but I have no idea what it could be.” The brawler pointed to a small wrapped box sitting by Linhardt’s bag, and they gave a little “oh!” and picked it up, holding it out to Ashe and Caspar. 

“After Ashe and I had talked, I went to the dining hall, as I was famished from forgetting to eat breakfast today. Annette and Mercedes were there on kitchen duty, and as I said hello and told them what had happened, they looked awfully guilty about something and said they would help me make a treat that I could then share with you. It sounded like a good idea, so after we cooked, I held onto it, hoping that you would come by for dinner and I could speak with you then.”

They shook the box lightly, and Ashe took it, unwrapping the package carefully. Inside was a small cake with white vanilla frosting and strawberries on top, with a candle in the middle. “Since we’ve gotten the apologies out of the way,” Linhardt continued, “I suppose that instead of a token of repentance, this can now be considered a birthday cake. Happy Birthday, Ashe,” they said with a smile, and Ashe’s eyes widened; in all of the commotion of both the task he’d been given and the war raging around him, he had completely forgotten that his birthday was today! No wonder the professor had left flowers for him.

“OH! Well, thank you!” he exclaimed, an embarrassed blush blooming across his face as Caspar looked at him in shock.

“What!? It’s your birthday!? Oh man, we’ve gotta do something special. Alright, uh… hm…”

Ashe couldn’t help but laugh; Caspar looked like he was going to strain something if he thought any harder about this. “It’s fine, Caspar. For my birthday, let’s have a picnic, just the three of us; this cake looks good enough to share.”

Caspar broke into a wide grin, clasping his hands behind his head. “Whew! Sounds good to me!” They moved over to a grassy area of the lawn, and as Ashe and Linhardt found a good place to sit, Caspar ran to the dining hall and back, brandishing some forks. “Alright! Let’s dig in!” After cutting the cake as evenly as they could with forks (Ashe refusing Caspar’s offer to use his axe as politely as possible), the three started to eat, giving groans of delight as they savored the cake. “Oh man. This is so GOOD!” Caspar exclaimed, practically shoving the dessert into his mouth. “Annette and Mercedes know their stuff!”

At the mention of their names, a light suddenly lit up in the back of Ashe’s head. “That reminds me! Caspar, Linhardt. Are the two of you… you know, just friends?” 

There was a beat of silence as Caspar and Linhardt swallowed, and shared a look with one another. “Nah,” Caspar answered, placing his arm around the mage’s shoulder. “We’re not _just_ friends. We’re _best_ friends! And hopefully, we’ll stay that way for the rest of our lives!”

Linhardt nodded at Caspar’s proclamation, evidently seeing no need to elaborate, and Ashe huffed, a satisfied smile on his face. Well, that was answer enough, he supposed. His gaze slid back down to his cake as he continued to eat, but looked up once more as Linhardt spoke up. “Speaking of friends, though, you mentioned earlier that you would like to talk more. I have always had a difficult time making friends, but with this out of the way, I think that perhaps we might get along. What do you think, Ashe? Would you, perhaps, want to give it a try?”

Caspar grinned, his smile rivaling the sun as his eyes lit up at the idea. “Yeah! We’re already friends, so if you and Lin want to become friends too, that would be awesome! I’d love to hang out more! You two can be nerds and then us two can be sparring buddies! How about it?”

Ashe couldn’t help but stare at them both, a torrent of emotion rushing through him. This war had been hell, and from the sound of it, it would continue for a while yet. But in this moment, the sadness, worry, and fear melted away into warmer, softer feelings, and Ashe had to hold himself together, slightly overwhelmed by the offer. “I… yes,” he murmured, before clearing his throat and repeating himself a little louder. “Yes!” 

Caspar gave a loud whoop and lunged forward, wrapping his muscled arm around Ashe’s shoulders, and pulled him close as well. “Sweet! I’m READY!”

“Caspar, please don’t yell in my ear,” Linhardt scolded, but the smile on their face belied the fact that they too were quite pleased with his answer, and more than the cake, more than making up with Linhardt, the laughter and warmth heralding the beginning of a new friendship was the best birthday gift Ashe could have ever hoped to receive.

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my [Twitter!](https://twitter.com/Saringold_)


End file.
